Dr. Lonnie Paulos, Orthopedic Surgeon

Lonnie Paulos, M.D., is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon with more than 35 years of experience, with special expertise in sports medicine. Over the years, Paulos has developed minimally invasive techniques and devices to assist patients. During his career, he has worked with athletes at the amateur and professional level, including serving as the orthopedic surgeon for the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team, ReAL Salt Lake, and the Cincinnati Bengals, to name a few. Most recently he was with the Andrews Research & Education Institute in Florida.

He has just recently opened the Paulos Joint Preservation and Sports Injury Clinic in Salt Lake City. Tell us about this clinic where his philosophy is to help patients get back to their active lifestyle through the safest and most effective treatment – whether that is through injury prevention, physical therapy or surgery.

What is joint preservation?

· The concept of joint preservation is to keep your own joints as long as possible.

· If we can maintain the joint, help it last longer, and prevent deterioration from injury or disease, we can prevent or delay a replacement.

· Joint preservation is a viable option for younger patients who are more likely to have complications or outlive the usefulness of a joint replacement. As we are seeing many more young patients because of the active sports participation, it’s important for them to know surgery may not be the best first option.

· Rather than having a partial or complete joint replacement, with joint preservation techniques and education, patients can return to normal, pain-free function in their knees, hips or shoulder joints.

Who is at risk for joint disease or pain?

· More than one in four Americans has a musculoskeletal impairment. In 2006, musculoskeletal symptoms became the No. 2 reason for a physician visit, according to the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS).

· Musculoskeletal conditions include the bones, joints, muscles, ligaments, or tendons and conditions such as arthritis or osteoporosis.

· Knee injuries are one of the most prevalent injuries.

What are the most common knee injuries?

· ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) injury – from changing direction rapidly, slowing down when running, landing from a jump

· MCL (medial collateral ligament) injury – caused by a direct blow to the outside of the knee (contact sports such as football or soccer)

· PCL (posterior cruciate ligament) injury – blow to the front of the knee

What are the Top 3 things people can do to prevent injury or deterioration to their knees?

· Pre-season training and cross-training

· Be aware of risk factors for injury and practice proper techniques

· Physical therapy to improve strength and flexibility (demonstrate or walk through an example)